I try to pose questions that will allow others to join me in a deeper conversation and to be vulnerable. I've been told I'm a great listener. Sometimes, though, I think that I do most of the listening. I want to be on the other end of that reciprocal conversation, being able to interject my thoughts. Maybe being autistic has something to…
I try to pose questions that will allow others to join me in a deeper conversation and to be vulnerable. I've been told I'm a great listener. Sometimes, though, I think that I do most of the listening. I want to be on the other end of that reciprocal conversation, being able to interject my thoughts. Maybe being autistic has something to do with it--that I just don't know when to break back into the conversation.
Last night, I approached someone whose child is going through chemotherapy. I keep hearing people asking how his daughter is, but no one asking how he is. I've been on that end of a conversation, too, so I asked him, "How are you doing?" At first he said he was doing ok, but when I opened up about knowing what it feels like to watch your child suffer and that it's so hard on the parents, he opened up and said, "I'm actually a mess. Falling apart. Thank you for asking." He then went on to talk about the challenges, and he allowed me to share some of my experience in dealing with kids who have chronic and life-threatening conditions. We need more of this. We need to invite people to open up and share what they really want to share. I think the invitation to do so is important. I keep trying to foster this approach hoping others will embrace it and be the next person to do the same for someone else.
I try to pose questions that will allow others to join me in a deeper conversation and to be vulnerable. I've been told I'm a great listener. Sometimes, though, I think that I do most of the listening. I want to be on the other end of that reciprocal conversation, being able to interject my thoughts. Maybe being autistic has something to do with it--that I just don't know when to break back into the conversation.
Last night, I approached someone whose child is going through chemotherapy. I keep hearing people asking how his daughter is, but no one asking how he is. I've been on that end of a conversation, too, so I asked him, "How are you doing?" At first he said he was doing ok, but when I opened up about knowing what it feels like to watch your child suffer and that it's so hard on the parents, he opened up and said, "I'm actually a mess. Falling apart. Thank you for asking." He then went on to talk about the challenges, and he allowed me to share some of my experience in dealing with kids who have chronic and life-threatening conditions. We need more of this. We need to invite people to open up and share what they really want to share. I think the invitation to do so is important. I keep trying to foster this approach hoping others will embrace it and be the next person to do the same for someone else.